This is an open TLD; any person or entity is permitted to register. Though originally intended for use by for-profit business entities, for a number of reasons it became the "main" TLD for domain names and is currently used by all types of entities including nonprofits, schools, and private individuals. Domain name registrations may be successfully challenged if the holder cannot prove an outside relation justifying reservation of the name[], to prevent "squatting". It was originally administered by the United States Department of Defense.

This is an open TLD; any person or entity is permitted to register. Originally intended for use by domains pointing to a distributed network of computers, or "umbrella" sites that act as the portal to a set of smaller websites.

The .edu TLD is limited to specific higher educational institutions such as, but not limited to, trade schools and universities. In the U.S., its use was restricted in 2001 to post-secondary institutions accredited by an agency on the list of nationally recognized accrediting agencies. This domain is therefore almost exclusively used by American colleges and universities. Some institutions, such as the Exploratorium, that do not meet the current registration criteria have grandfathered domain names.

Explanation of the code when it is not self-evident from the English name of the country. These are usually domains that arise from native name of the country (e.g. .de for Deutschland, German name for Germany).

A

Commonly used for academic websites, such as universities. However, .ac is not to be confused with the official academic domains used by several countries such as the United Kingdom (.ac.uk), India (.ac.in) or Indonesia (.ac.id). Also used in the accounting, consulting, and air-conditioning industries.

Defined by the Antarctic Treaty as everything south of latitude 60°S. AQ domain names are available to government organizations who are signatories to the Antarctic Treaty and to other registrants who have a physical presence in Antarctica.

C

Australian territory: not to be confused with Cocos islands in Guam. Currently marketed as global domain, registration allowed worldwide, local presence not required; the domain is currently operated by eNIC, a VeriSign company.

E

In Japan, "EC" is used as an acronym for "electronic commerce". Because of that, it's used unofficially by companies dedicated to provide online stores like BASE, a company that has two domains related to e-commerce: "base.in" and "official.ec".[15]

I, J

Restricted to Indonesian companies (co.id), organisations (or.id), academic (ac.id & sch.id) and citizens (biz.id, my.id & web.id). Second-level domains are becoming available now and opened to general registration on 17 August 2014.[19]

Businesses and professionals must be registered as an approved type of organization in the Brønnøysund Register Centre. Individual applicants must be of age (18 years) and be registered in the Folkeregisteret. All applicants must have a Norwegian postal address.

S

Registrant must have a registered trademark in Saudi Arabia matching the domain name to register or provide company incorporation documents of a company in Saudi Arabia or for personal registrations a copy of valid ID. A letter on the official letterhead of your organization addressed to SaudiNIC requesting the domain name registration is also required. Local administrative contact required. 2LD registrations rolled out in 2011.[35]

Seldom used. Restricted to individuals and companies in European Union, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Domains must be longer than two characters. It has also been adopted by the community of the game Team Fortress 2.[cctld 12]

U, V

The ISO 3166-1 code for the United Kingdom is GB. UK is a specially reserved ISO 3166-1 code. However, the creation of the .uk TLD predates the ISO 3166-1 list of ccTLD and is the primary TLD for the United Kingdom.[17]

Registrants must be United States citizens, residents, or organizations, or a foreign entity with a presence in the United States. Formerly commonly used by U.S. State and local governments, see also .gov TLD

Open TLD; any person or entity is permitted to register; however, registrations may be challenged later if they are not held by commercial entities in accordance with the domain's charter. This TLD was created to provide relief for the .com TLD, where many names have already been taken.

N, O

Open TLD; any person or entity is permitted to register; however, registrations may be challenged later if they are not by individuals (or the owners of fictional characters) in accordance with the domain's charter.

"All registrants within the .pharmacy gTLD are vetted prior to registration to confirm that they meet all applicable regulatory standards, including pharmacy licensure and valid prescription requirements, in the jurisdictions where they are based and where they serve patients."[81]

This TLD is intended primarily for engaged couples on a short-term basis (two years with prohibitive third-year renewal fees for second-level domains).[99]And although the registry is advertising for multiple world languages, all domains appear to need to be in Latin script.[100]

An open TLD, any person or entity is permitted to register. Conceived for those cited in one of the Who's Who reference titles published around the world, the registry was opened for use by private individuals, and for-profit and nonprofit entities, including those with social media aspirations. Registry policies allow for rapid takedown of non-compliant domains, for violations including imposturous registration of another's names, and proscribed uses, including pornography or adult services/applications.

German

Upon request, you will be required to demonstrate current or pending designation as a GmbH company whose existence can be validated with the respective public authorities in Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein or Switzerland.